This summer, visitors living with disabilities and families with pushchairs enjoyed better access to East Devon’s pebble beach’s thanks to more than £17,600 of funding from the Access for All Fund, created by DEFRA and administered locally by East Devon National Landscape.  

Now in its fourth year, the Fund aims to improve physical and digital infrastructure across Protected Landscapes, ensuring they are welcoming and accessible for people of all ages, abilities, and backgrounds.  

Since 2022, the fund has enabled the installation of 464 square metres of specialist beach matting at Seaton, Beer, and Sidmouth. These tracks create safe and practical pathways across shingle and pebbles, making it easier for wheelchair users, people with mobility needs, and families to reach the shoreline and enjoy beachside facilities.  

Through the Access for All Fund, East Devon National Landscape has contributed £17,654 to improving beach access since 2022 and has seen the installation of 464 square metres of beach matting.  

Plans are now underway to replace poor quality walkways at Beer in 2025/26, improving access towards Ducky’s café and Beer Sailing Club.  

Steph Aburrow, Projects Officer at East Devon National Landscape, said: “We’re delighted that the Access for All Fund has helped improve beach accessibility in East Devon. Something as simple as matting can make a huge difference for people with mobility needs and for families with young children, allowing them to get closer to the sea and be part of the beach experience. The work undertaken by East Devon District Council to install beach matting opens up our protected landscapes so that everyone can enjoy them, which is exactly what the fund is designed to do.”  

Peter Blyth, Beach Safety Officer at East Devon District Council, added: “It’s fantastic to have worked with East Devon National Landscape and Town Councils across the district to install matting across all of East Devon’s main beaches, (excluding Exmouth where the sandy and tidal conditions make it unsuitable). Where possible, the matting stays in place all year, but in some locations it is removed during winter to protect it from storm damage. The support from the East Devon National Landscape Access for All Fund has been vital in making these improvements possible, ensuring that nobody is excluded from enjoying our beautiful coastline.”  

The Access for All Fund still has funding available for community groups and organisations with projects that can be delivered by March 2026. Interested parties are encouraged to contact the East Devon National Landscape team to discuss their ideas. 

More information about East Devon National Landscape and the Access for All Fund can be found at: eastdevon-nl.org.uk.